


Second Best

by AuthorInDistress



Category: Vampire Knight (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alpha/Omega, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anti Kaname Kuran, M/M, Temporarily Unrequited Love, Vampire Knight Memories, Vampire Knight Memories Spoilers, super canon divergence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-23
Updated: 2019-11-29
Packaged: 2020-10-27 01:01:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20751719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AuthorInDistress/pseuds/AuthorInDistress
Summary: During the restart of the night-class and within the Hunter's Association, Hanabusa helps Zero through a rut for Yuki's sake.It's an incident he'd rather forget but life won't let him.





	1. Chapter 1

.

It wasn’t often that he was alone.

Despite being told by Cross that he wasn’t a prisoner now and could stay for as long as needed, there was always a hunter nearby and his ‘room’ was watched. Yuki bought him tablets, having a little more free reign than he did considering her adoptive father, but even she was limited.

Now however, the both of them were surrounded by hunters and not one of them paid attention to the two vampires, too engrossed in keeping one particular hunter in line; Kiryu. His rejection to blood tablets had apparently caused a rejection to scents but now, recovered and fit, the smell of two vampire omegas so close by and right after a taste of blood, had sent him into rut.

Hanabusa had had no doubt that it was Yuki’s scent causing the most trouble, which was why he wasn’t surprised when Yagami blocked their way.

“Yuki-san,” He spoke over the ruckus, ignoring Hanabusa’s bristle at his form of address, “You need to leave. Now.”

She didn’t move, still in shock. As soon as he’d walked back in from a mission, Kiryu had gone almost blood-crazed, pushing through everyone in his way until he could reach the omega he wanted. Yuki had held him back of course, but her eyes had been wide and betrayed before she’d understood what had been happening and by then, others had pulled him off.

“Yuki-sama,” Hanabusa put a hand to her shoulder, prying her away from the scene and leading her down to the ‘room’ she’d been given. Since her declaration to reform the night class, other nobles had been hanging around the area but they’d been sent away until everything could be finalised.

Now, hearing Kiryu’s growls through the hallways, he wished that they’d told one or two of them to stay, for back-up in case he needed it. In the end however, the hunters clearly knew what they were doing and Kiryu was restrained and put in a cell to cool off.

He stayed with Yuki throughout the first two hours, wincing with her when every yell showed how painful the isolation in deep rut was. Kiryu was howling at times too, his chains rattling as he audibly launched himself at the door again-and-again. After a day, Yuki was told to barricade herself in her room but at Cross’ request, went to a safehouse owned by the Hunters instead.

Considering the fact that her absence helped Kiryu too, no one argued the resource being used on a vampire, and another day went by with it still happening. Hanabusa stayed where he was, not willing to rock the already shaky truce that they had, but by the third day he was starting to regret it. So when night came around, he left his ‘room’ and wandered the halls, fully-dressed in case he came across a hunter and sticking to the shadows.

Why, he wasn’t sure, but he knew it was mostly curiosity.

He’d only ever seen one vampire in a rut so deep before and that had been a pureblood, though ironically, it had been due to Yuki then as well.

Kiryu wasn’t a born vampire but had pureblood’s blood in him, and was powerful and clearly a force to be reckoned with. He wondered if simple cursed chains would hold him for long.

The halls were quiet at this time, with most everyone else resting or elsewhere, and the cell Kiryu had been put in looked almost like a forgotten area of the institute. He stopped outside it, flicking his gaze over the symbols carved into the metal and wood, feeling Kiryu’s burning scent emanating from it.

He was quiet in there now too.

“The hell do you think _you’re_ doing?”

He spun around, refusing to look shocked even if he was, to see Yagami leaning against the wall with a cigarette dangling from the side of his mouth.

Flustered at being caught he floundered for an answer, “I – was just checking.” He said, straightening and trying to seem important, “For Yuki-sama’s safety.”

“That’s sweet.” Yagami smiled without humour, “But Zero’s as secure as can be. So you can get going.” Still drawn to the room, Hanabusa didn’t move, and Yagami squinted at him, the light from his cigarette shining in his eyes.

For a moment, neither of them spoke, and the silence seemed to intensify. And then, sighing, Yagami pushed himself from the wall and threw something across toward him. Hanabusa caught it one-handed, looking down to see a metal fob attached to some keys.

He stared down at it as Yagami left him there. “Lock the door behind you.” He muttered as he went, putting his cigarette out against the nearest windowsill.

Confused as to what had changed his mind but not bothering to stand here thinking about it, Hanabusa turned back toward the door and raised the fob. The symbols recognised whatever was on its underside and revealed a lock for him to use, the clunk of metal moving echoing everywhere as it did.

He slid the largest key in, half-expecting some hunters to round the corner and stop him now, but no one did and the door creaked open.

He shut it right behind him, locking it again and leaving the keys beside it on the floor, out of reach from Kiryu should he try to grab them. The quiet outside was nothing compared to in here and it was dark too, pitch-black even, but he could see the glow of Kiryu’s eyes as clear as anything. And once his own adjusted to the light, he could see the position he was in as well.

His clothes were torn from his own hands and he was crouched against the wall, looking both pissed and tired. And wildly alert.

“Get the hell out.” He croaked, uncurling his arms from his knees and bracing ready to attack should he feel the need to.

Hanabusa scoffed lightly, despite how hard his heart was pumping, “You sound terrible.”

Slamming a fist into the wall, Kiryu bellowed at him, “I said get the _fuck out!”_

“You said ‘hell out’ actually,” Hanabusa corrected him, internally telling himself to shut up, “But that’s just semantics.”

Panting, Kiryu regarded him, “Are you stupid? Do you want me to hurt you?”

“Yuki-sama’s not here.” Hanabusa told him, even though he probably knew that already, “But you’ll be in rut for days now it’s started.”

His chest heaving, Kiryu bared his teeth, “Yeah? Tell me something I don’t know.”

“… alright,” He stepped forward, ignoring the way his hairs rose over the back of his neck and how Kiryu’s eyes followed his every move, “Yuki-sama is restarting the night class and you promised her help. Going into rut’s the opposite of that.”

“You think I did it on _purpose?”_

“No, of course not. It was bad timing.” He stopped where he was now, less than two feet from him, “But you’re stuck because of it.”

“You’re still not telling me something I _don’t **know.**_**” **

Taking just one more step forward, Hanabusa looked down at him, his hands shaking at his side so he closed them into fists, “I can help.” He offered and for some reason, it came out a whisper.

Kiryu looked at him, unblinking.

“I’m an omega too.” Hanabusa continued, “I’m not pureblood but – I can help.” When he still didn’t get a reply, he added, “I did it once before. For Kaname-sama.”

Too late, he realised he shouldn’t have said that name, because Kiryu was on his feet a moment later and had him by the arm. He was hauled forward and thrown to the wall, pushed against it as Kiryu braced his arms either side of his head.

“Do I look like I give a _shit_ what you did for Kuran?”

Blood in his mouth, Hanabusa glared, “You look like someone who should be glad they’re being _offered_ help here.”

Crowding in closer, Kiryu’s eyes bore into his but he refused to back down, instead lifting his chin until his scent could flow. Within seconds, it filled the almost airtight room and Kiryu’s arms shook.

“Why – ?” He sounded like he’d eaten gravel, raw and unsteady, “Why the hell would you – ?”

“I promised Yuki-sama my help,” He answered, honestly, “And she needs you.” Then, spurned on by this sincerity, he added, “And … this sounds like it hurts.”

Looking both convinced and conflicted, one of Kiryu’s hands left the wall and found his neck, wrapping around it and forcing his chin higher.

“I’m not going to be gentle.” It was both a promise and a warning.

Neither was Kaname-sama, he almost said, but this time he caught himself and whispered, “I know.”

Clearly still not sure, Hanabusa slowly slid a hand of his own down and gripped Kiryu through his torn trousers, wincing when fingers grabbed his wrist and squeezed in warning, but not stopping regardless. He began to stroke, following the pattern of Kiryu’s breathing and judging what pace to take.

The hand around his neck loosened and slipped down to his chest as Kiryu bent forward with a bitten-back moan, his head falling to Hanabusa’s shoulder.

“Fuck.” He whispered into the material. Hanabusa quickened his pumping at that, staring at the door over Kiryu’s head as he did only to suddenly end up staring up at the ceiling when he was pushed back and yanked down to the floor.

He bit his tongue; his gasp of pain swallowed by a kiss. Kiryu looked dazed above him and when he dove for another kiss, Hanabusa’s eyes squeezed shut on their own accord. He felt and let Kiryu unbutton his shirt from under the sweater vest, pulling it all off as one afterward and then doing the same to his pants.

A finger swept over him, gathering any wetness he might already have from simply being in proximity to a rut, and then it pushed inside. He stiffened, keeping a hand on Kiryu’s cock still, but when the finger curled and deepened and was joined by a second, he had to let go or he’d squeeze too tight.

Kiryu barely noticed however, too intent on opening him up for what his body was crying for. He worked him with two for a while and then three and then four, rotating and plunging them in as Hanabusa twitched and bit his lip beneath him.

He replaced them with himself a moment later and he hadn’t been lying about not being gentle, barely waiting until he was seated before thrusting down. His thighs slapped Hanabusa’s skin with each rock, the sound echoing through the room, and his teeth buried themselves into his neck.

He didn’t drink however, just muffled his shouts into the skin like a child would scream into a pillow. He grunted and bit, lifting Hanabusa’s legs higher until he could press in deeper. Gone was the confliction and in its place was pure need, feral and violent.

He tore whatever he touched, marking scratches and bites that burned Hanabusa’s neck and collarbone, but it was fine. Everything ached and his own pleasure was a secondary factor here, but it was fine.

With Kaname, he’d done this for him out of respect and because back then, he’d known that it was all he was ever going to get.

But here, for Kiryu, he knew it was for himself. Yuki needed Kiryu yes, and he’d pledged himself to this truce, but a bigger part of him knew that he would never have been able to rest after hearing the pain he’d heard before.

Knowing Kiryu a little more than he did before, it was harder to be indifferent, and he couldn’t go back to thinking he deserved something awful simply for being a jerk anymore. He wanted to help, and in doing so he could handle a little pain for it.

“Fuck – _fuck_.” Gripping his thighs tight, Kiryu lurched forward with a yell, falling onto his hands and just about managing not to collapse entirely onto him.

His knot had already started to form but considering the intensity of his rut, it wouldn’t take too long to go, not when everything that his body had wanted to spend had been spent already.

They lay there panting for a while, the knot gradually receding, and once it finally let them separate, Kiryu slid off of him and onto his side. He was shiny with sweat, completely exhausted, and Hanabusa knew what came next.

Not wanting to wait to be told to get out, he got to his feet, stumbling a little but steady enough to walk. Everything ached however and he felt dizzy, but there was nothing some tablets and rest wouldn’t fix. He’d done this before.

As he bent to gather his trousers though, thankful that they hadn’t been destroyed, he was grabbed around the waist and pulled back down to the floor.

“Wh – ”

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?”

He forced himself still, trying to detect whether this was the rut talking and if the need was still there, but then Kiryu pulled him closer and settled down so he relaxed. His scent was dying down as well, no longer so vividly hot and _there_, which meant that at least having an omega had helped.

“You don’t – want me to leave?” He checked, his voice ironically soft after the intensity of what had just happened.

Kiryu didn’t answer him and for a moment, it was like nothing else existed. Sated, sore and held closely like this, he felt warm and didn’t feel nervous shutting his eyes to the dark. It was nice.

Time passed as they lay over the ground, with Kiryu’s breathing evening out until eventually, he was slumped against his back in sleep.

Hanabusa felt tired himself, his eyes drooping and the pleasantness that he was feeling helped some as well. He was almost there too, but then Kiryu drew him closer and whispered brokenly in his sleep, _“… Yuki ...” _And he froze.

Right.

His eyes snapped open almost immediately, a shard of ice lodging its way down through his throat to his stomach. He blinked a few times to remember where he was and who he was with, and then began working his way out of Kiryu’s embrace and getting dressed. He pulled his clothes on with several winces and staggered toward the door, picking the keys up from the spot that he’d left them in.

Kiryu didn’t wake as he left and he was glad for that, not wanting to answer anything he might be asked. He locked everything up as it had been before, the shard still sticking a lump in his throat that he couldn’t swallow, and for a moment all he wanted to do was rest his head against the door and scream.

But then he heard a lighter and turned to see that Yagami was back, leaning against the wall again.

They locked eyes across the hallway and he felt his cheeks warm at how he must look; hair and clothes dishevelled, reddened marks on his neck and wrists and blood from a bite under his ear. He felt cheap. Stupid.

He wasn’t sure he’d ever felt humiliation like this before and begged Yagami to say something, anything, to try and bring some levity to the situation but he stayed quiet.

In the end, Hanabusa crossed the space himself and handed him back the keys, turning to leave. And finally then, only then, Yagami spoke.

“Rut’s over?” He asked. Hanabusa nodded without looking back, “Right. Well. Thank you.”

Straightening, he grit his teeth and left the man there, heading for his room. He felt hollow however, emptier than he’d felt with Kaname, and maybe that was why.

For a second time, an alpha had taken him in rut when they’d had someone else in mind. Someone else they wanted. He’d been second-best for a long time now and having it shoved in his face once again hurt. He only had himself to blame this time, though, he knew that. He wouldn’t have had the reminder if he’d just ignored Kiryu’s cries and stayed indifferent.

Too late now.

He got himself ready for bed, taking a few tablets to try and help him heal and wiping the blood from his neck off with a wet facecloth. Cross had gotten him pyjamas, in a pale blue, but they had a low neck which showed his collarbone. Knowing Yuki sometimes came in to wake him herself, he took out a jumper and put that on as well despite the hot night, just to hide the marks as much as he could before they faded.

It was as he lay down, however, that he realised that his face was wet. Dabbing a cheek with one hand, he pressed his lips together, hating that he was crying. And that this hurt so damn much.

“Dammit.” He pressed his face into the pillow, curling up as much as he could without wincing, _“Dammit.”_

When would he ever learn.

.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I literally don't even know why I'm writing for these two again, the fandom for this pairing is _tiny_ but ... yeah. I fucking love them, so here :)


	2. Chapter 2

.

Hanabusa sat by the Yiku bridge, staring down at the water as he waited for Yuki to catch up to him. The academy wasn’t too far now but she was constantly getting distracted along the way, something that he knew was only because she was nervous to be taking her place as Class President, but if he tried to comfort her she flat out denied it.

So instead, he stayed patient, sitting and waiting. The hunter who’d ‘escorted’ them was called Ogawa Hitoshi and was as silent as thunder was loud. He stood just a little away from him, looking down at the path toward where Yuki was currently talking to a passer-by.

Eventually, she glanced up and saw them both and said her goodbyes, walking over toward them. She held some grace still but Hanabusa could see how much she wanted to run.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.” She said once she was close enough and Hanabusa stood, shaking his head.

“It’s not a p – ”

“This is the last time you stop.” Hitoshi spoke over him however, his voice stern and brittle, and they both bristled at it.

“Excuse me?” Hanabusa narrowed his eyes, turning toward him to reprimand his tone, but Yuki lay a hand on his arm to stop him.

“Lead the way, Aido-kun.” She said both softly and faux-cheerfully, and he straightened, giving Hitoshi a cool look before walking back toward the academy.

Upon their arrival, he joined Yuki in her checks of the night class and its new students. There were many that Hanabusa recognised from parties that his family had held and who he knew were frightened by the news of his father’s murder, but almost all of them had also been shown to publicly worship Kaname. To be here now, following his sister instead, was both hopeful and worrying.

He didn’t know how many were genuine and how many could potentially be here to put an end to Yuki’s reign. Many still saw her as a human girl despite her true self, and her habits and manner of speaking didn’t help either, which meant that Hanabusa had his work cut out in tutoring her once again.

Though that was what happened, he supposed, when you were born a vampire but raised a human.

He’d done all he could to teach her in that year prior but a year couldn’t erase ten of what she was used to.

Once introductions were done, Yuki flit around to check the dorms and so forth whilst Hanabusa leant back against the wall and watched with his arms folded across his chest. Despite her time in the day class, she obviously knew where everything for the night class was as well, which was good as it helped when it looked like she knew what she was doing.

She was still polite too and her optimism in the face of her brother/fiancé’s crimes was really something to commend. Hanabusa felt himself smile as he watched, shaking his head a little fondly as well.

“You look like a proud mother.” He stiffened at that but didn’t bother to turn around and face who he knew that said it.

“If you say so.” He murmured, his smile fading and his blood running hot in spite of how cold he felt. Kiryu didn’t respond past his first comment however, until eventually, they were approached by the other hunter Kaito and the silence was broken.

“Runes check out.” He reported, speaking over Hanabusa’s shoulder to where Kiryu was probably standing, “And no one but that Sayori girl remember what happened before.”

“And the schedules?”

“All good.” Kaito shrugged, “Just one lapse.”

At that, Hanabusa straightened and paid a little more attention, “What lapse?” He asked but Kaito barely glanced his way.

“What lapse?” Kiryu repeated the question and this time, Kaito answered.

“The science professor’s double-booked for the day class. And she won’t budge.”

Having assumed this ‘lapse’ might have been a security issue, Hanabusa relaxed a little, but an absence of a teacher was still a problem. Especially if he was to keep his word that he’d support Yuki. Being a teacher down wasn’t a good start for her reign as president.

“Tell her she’ll be paid double.” He offered but again, Kaito ignored him, “I’m sorry, am I invisible? Or do you only see me when there’s a _chainsaw_ around?”

Finally, he was looked at, and Kaito raised an eyebrow when Kiryu snorted, “Aido can teach.” He said and now, Hanabusa turned to face him, ignoring the fact that Kiryu hadn’t called him ‘senpai’ as he was always wont to do.

“What?” He blinked just as Kaito asked, “_Blondie_ will?”

“He can. Considering how many times I had to haul him back inside during science classes, I know he knows the information back-to-front. And he’s apparently a genius. So yes. He can teach.” Kiryu met his gaze and smirked, “It’ll keep him in class at the very least.”

“I’ll be staying in class anyway,” He snapped, calming himself down immediately to not draw attention to their conversation, “For Yuki-sama’s sake.”

“You better be,” Kaito drawled, “Zero’s not going to be the only ‘guardian’ around here anymore. I’m joining too.” He grinned, his teeth sharp, “And I’m not going to be as nice as he is either.”

Giving him a long, cool look, Hanabusa narrowed his eyes, “Kiryu’s _nice?”_ Was all he said to that before pushing off of the wall and walking away. He didn’t look back, even when he felt their gazes burn into him, but obviously didn’t look at where he was going either because he walked right into a new student and staggered back.

“Sorry!” She apologised for his blunder, pressing her lips together and blushing, “A - Aido-sama.” He blinked, not recognising her despite her clear recognition of him, “I’m – oh, sorry.” She bowed slightly, introducing herself, “I’m Serabyu Kimiki.”

“Serabyu.” He murmured, remembering the name now, “Your sister – ?” He instinctively turned around to see if he could spot her and Kimiki winced.

“She didn’t come.” She told him, “Papa thought it might be embarrassing if you and she became friends.”

Oh. He frowned, “But I didn’t reject her because of her family. I’m just – ”

“She knows that. It’s just – papa.” She shrugged, “She didn’t want to marry you anyway.” At that, she clapped a hand to her mouth, realising as she’d said it how that sounded, “I didn’t mean that to be rude! It’s because she has her eye on someone else, that’s why! Not because you’re – !”

“It’s okay.” He held a hand up to stop her, smiling himself now, “I get it, thank you.” Turning away now, he gave her one last look, “I’ll see you in class.”

“Yes! Yes you will!” Her excitement was nice to see. And contagious too as no sooner had she declared her joy to be here, the conversation in the room heightened and any nervousness started to dissipate. Those that were doubting the peace seemed to come to terms with it and Yuki’s warning that she would deal with anyone who harmed a human was full of authority and wasn’t questioned.

Even after her mistake in calling herself an _errand_ girl, of all things.

“Are the hunters going to be staying in this dorm?” One girl asked before they were dismissed and Yuki’s face froze.

“No,” She answered, and Hanabusa glanced over his shoulder to where Kiryu was now, flinching away when his gaze was met, “The hunters will be in the Sun Dorm but will patrol at night to keep an eye out.”

That seemed to satisfy most of them and their anxiety at having hunters so close-by eased. Kiryu staying quiet at the back and not commenting helped comfort them too, but Kaito was another matter. He muttered something under his breath and left the room, making Hanabusa turn again when he heard the door open only to spin back around when Kiryu looked to him a second time.

He knew his avoidance of the alpha was far from subtle but he couldn’t help it and just hoped that he wouldn’t be asked about it anytime soon. Like a prayer answered, though, the rest of the day passed without Kiryu’s presence and he was far too busy to focus on his absence as well.

Yuki didn’t meet the requirements for the classes but still stayed to ensure that everyone behaved whilst the human professors taught them and as she watched over them, Hanabusa made notes from the material to tutor her once lessons were done, annoyed that almost everything he’d taught her before had fallen out of her head already.

Kimiki sat beside him as well, a diligent student, with spare pencils to hand out when Hanabusa snapped his. She also used her schedule to show that he had been listed as the teacher for science and only had two days to plan his first lesson.

Kiryu had obviously approached Yuki with the idea and she’d agreed and it had been added in. He scowled, wishing that he’d been consulted at least, but he supposed he should be glad that the two of them could speak civilly enough to discuss this together.

Heaven knew someone around here should be able to.

Once the sun came up and lessons were over, he tutored Yuki in her room, ignoring her yawns and moans that she wanted to sleep first until he eventually grew tired of them and left her to it.

He shut the door behind him, only to then freeze when he caught sight of what had once been Kaname’s room. Of course, that had all been destroyed when Rido had attacked, but its location and appearance had been perfectly recreated. Like it called him, he took a step forwards and then another, and another, until he was right outside and could enter.

Walking through was like walking into the past and he scanned his eyes over everything within it; the sofa, the desk, the doorway that led to the bedroom. There had been a chess board somewhere here but that was obviously gone now. So was the scent as well. Now all there was, was paint and sawdust.

He shut his eyes, cancelling everything out, only to swoon when the memories of everything that had happened suddenly burst through his head. Kaname had gone into rut here, had taken Hanabusa’s offer to help but had told him to leave afterward. Had taken his virginity without so much as a ‘thank you’, though at the time Hanabusa had been _glad_ to be of use.

So glad.

He pressed a hand to his mouth, feeling sick, particularly when the memory of his father’s head being sliced off swamped his mind. He just didn’t _understand_.

_Why?_

Too close to vomiting, he fled the room, barricading himself in his own one and trying to catch his breath. In here, however, there were also memories. He’d shared this room with Akatsuki but he was gone now too. He was with Kaname, _‘back to Kaname-sama’s side’_ he’d said when Hanabusa had last seen him.

Even after the death of his uncle, he’d gone back. How could he?

Diving onto his bed, Hanabusa burrowed under the blankets, willing himself to sleep. He couldn’t fall apart like this, he had to keep a level head. He had to be the advisor he’d promised to be, or else what was there for him?

In the end however, he couldn’t sleep, and decided to just go down to the lounge and find a book to read, or something else to distract him. A few other students were already there when he arrived and some stood when they saw him, including Kimiki who bounded over with a smile.

“Aido-sama,” She greeted, “Some of us were planning on playing some card games, would you like to join?”

He glanced down at her, figuring that that was as good a distraction as any, and agreeing to sit in. An alpha student, whose name he couldn’t remember just yet, stood and pulled out a seat for him.

“Thank you,” He smiled, never having had that treatment before. Usually Ruka had been the omega everyone had flitted towards but he supposed that this student was just very polite.

With no Ruka now, he knew where everyone’s eyes went instead and Yuki was a pureblood as well, unlike him. It seemed that no matter where he was, he would be second best, but that didn’t matter right now. Right now, he was going to play cards, and he was going to win and he was going to _gloat_ once he had.

“I’ll deal.” Another student declared, this one called Nagaziwa Makoto he remembered, when he began shuffling the cards and scooting them over the table toward each player. One student caught hers with a glare.

“Makoto! You’re going too fast.” She scolded but he ignored her and continued to let them fly. Hanabusa noted that he was gentler when giving him his pile and smirked a little, lifting it to see what he had.

“So what are we playing?” He asked and Kimiki turned to him.

“It’s a game we all played together when we were younger,” She said, which of course, considering their familiarity with each other, this group were obviously childhood friends. Or perhaps even relatives. “I’ll teach you the rules. It’s called Red, Red, Go.”

“No it’s not,” Makoto told her, “We never gave it a name.”

“Well I just did, just now.” She turned her nose up at him and Hanabusa laughed, listening to the instructions that followed next.

The first round was slow, mainly because he kept forgetting what he was supposed to do, but when he got the hang of it, they sped up and the tension rose.

“Go!” Aota shouted when it was her turn only to realise that she’d tapped the wrong card, “No wait! I don’t mean it!”

“Too late!” Makoto yelled back, grabbing the cards and shoving them toward her, “You said it!”

Hanabusa laughed again, feeling a lot more comfortable, and Aota glared at him, “What are you laughing at? You’re _losing_.”

Immediately, the table hushed as they stared at her and she turned beet red, opening her mouth to apologise but Hanabusa leant forward and counted her cards.

“Actually, you have 28 cards right now,” He corrected her, “So who’s the loser?”

“I – !” She began to protest but was smiling now, relaxed that she hadn’t gotten in trouble for insulting him, which was good. He wasn’t a pureblood and he may be on good terms with Yuki but that didn’t mean he was above them. Though he believed it was probably because of his father, that they were so careful, but he’d rather break that notion here and now.

_“You_, what?” He taunted, “You’re _not_ losing to someone who’s never played this game before?”

“No!”

“It’s your turn, Aido-sama,” Makoto said, smiling as well, “Let’s see if you can get better than the master.”

Once the game was over however, they were all laughing at Makoto’s face, the actual loser who was completely shocked to find himself that way. Kimiki had won, having been pretty sneaky and quiet so no one had paid much attention to her rapidly lessening pile of cards, and Hanabusa had come third.

“I’m going to go to bed now,” Aota announced as Makoto packed the deck away, “It’s almost noon and we’ve got classes at 7.”

“We should all go to bed,” Yamao, the alpha that had pulled out the chair for Hanabusa, added and as one they all rose to leave. Hanabusa was the last to go, the distraction having helped plenty, but now that the lounge was empty his worries came flooding back. At least now, however, he was actually tired so when he made it to his bed, he could fall asleep right away.

He dreamed of nothing and woke refreshed.

The next day passed relatively the same, only this time they played poker and he easily won. Yamao complimented his skill in the game and Aota raised an eyebrow at his tone, teasing him that he had a crush until he snapped at her.

Hanabusa pretended not to let that affect him but in all honesty, he could do without crushes right now. The day class students were enough on that spectrum alone and despite having loved it a year ago, he wasn’t looking forward to when they would start to queue up to see them again.

Too much had changed since for him to care now.

After Aota’s comment however, he thought he’d give cards a miss the next day to make his stance clear and simply went to sleep like a normal vampire. He woke a few hours to 7 in a panic however, remembering that he had his first teaching lesson and that he had nothing planned.

Hurriedly getting dressed, he ran toward the classrooms to find a book and start to make notes, flustered as he came across both Shiki and Rima where they were sat over the desks and chatting. They nodded when he asked if he could join them but their talking soon became a conversation about how his lesson should go and it wasn’t all entirely helpful.

“You should yell a lot.” Rima let him know, “That shows you mean it.”

“Mean _what?_” He rolled his eyes, not for the first time, highlighting a passage.

“What you’re saying.”

“Or just pretend you know it all,” Shiki offered.

“I do know it all.” Hanabusa reminded him, “And I’m almost done here anyway, no thanks to you two.”

“I like science,” Shiki added, ignoring him, “I could help.”

“_What_ I’m teaching isn’t an issue,” He snapped, “It’s that everyone here is at a different level, and I don’t know how I’m supposed to cater to them all.” He flicked through the pages of the book, frowning, “Should I have one-on-ones?”

Shiki shrugged, rolling a lollipop between forefinger and thumb whilst Rima answered for him, “The other teachers didn’t care about that. Be like them.”

“No,” Hanabusa glared at her, “I want to be a good teacher.”

Like the thought hadn’t occurred to her, she made a face, “Why?”

“Why do you think? For Yuki-sama to – ”

“That’s what I mean,” Rima leant forward, her hair draping over her shoulders, “Why do you care if she succeeds?”

“Why do you?” He countered, “You collaborated with her before I did.”

“That’s different.” He scoffed, and she pressed her lips together, “Aido-kun you’ve spent _years_ riding Kaname-sama’s dick but now you want to be a better person for his _sister? _It’s different._”_

His face burning at the image that she’d given, he sat up a little straighter, “Well why are _you_ here?” 

“I like her.” She said, shrugging, “I respect her.”

“Well so do I. And in case you’ve forgotten, Kaname-sama killed my father. So I’m not – I don’t follow him. Not anymore.” He glanced back down at the book, swallowing, “I think I’ll start with the higher levels and see who doesn’t follow from there.”

He didn’t outright ask them to leave with that but his tone was pretty telling, enough so that he saw Shiki reach over and pinch Rima as a mild reprimand before they both got up to leave.

With them gone however, the silence of the room was unmistakable. He hunched his shoulders through it and started to scrawl his final planning notes, writing until his fingers ached from holding the pencil too tight.

Considering how similar everything here felt, it couldn’t be more different. Just a year and a bit ago, he’d have been puppy-eyed and following Kaname around like a duckling after its mother, or cursing Yuki and mocking her with every breath.

Now, he was reading a science book so he could teach the night class and prove that Yuki knew what she was doing, all the while hating the ache in his heart when he thought of Kaname’s betrayal.

And his father …

He shut his eyes, pushing the book away and lowering his head. His _father_, who’d wanted Hanabusa to be cared for before he’d died, so he’d organised his marriage to Serabyu Haru but hadn’t had the chance to find another when she’d been rejected.

His father, who had had no idea that Hanabusa had been with two alphas in his life already, both of whom he’d hate to have heard about, because neither would have brought him happiness or honour. Neither had been the best decisions he’d made.

Kaname and Kiryu.

A pureblood-turned-fugitive who would never have proposed and a vampire-hating hunter who was in love with said pureblood’s sister.

He clutched at his chest as he sat there, biting his lip. Since Kiryu’s rut, he’d checked several times and had been sure that he wasn’t pregnant, but the scare alone had been enough to remind him how stupid he’d been.

At least with Kaname he’d had protection. He could only wonder what it would have been like if he hadn’t and if he had gotten pregnant _then_. What would Kaname have done? How would he have reacted, himself?

With happiness? Excitement?

He growled and swiped a hand out to knock his books and notes off the table, watching as they fell against the desks and scattered everywhere. He panted once that burst of emotion was over, regretting it immediately, especially when he belatedly realised that the door had just been opened.

“Aido-kun?” He startled, standing, but Yuki was looking to the mess that he’d made and not at him.

“Yuki-sama! I’m – I wasn’t – I mean – ”

Nothing like her brother however, she didn’t seem angry and simply walked toward him instead, taking a seat on one of the desks and patting the space beside her until he sat back down as well.

“It’s alright.” She murmured, tucking her hair behind an ear, “I … get confused sometimes as well.”

He pressed his hands together tight in his lap, frowning and radiating his need to not have this conversation right now, but she continued nonetheless.

“I get angry. With him. I don’t understand why he’s doing all this, why he’s pushing me away.” Now, though, he looked at her, meeting her gaze and noticing the determination within it, “But I also know that I can only do what’s right for me. What I can do. And right now, keeping the night class and protecting humans with our treaty is more important than my feelings. Once that’s done, I’ve _promised_, I will find him and ask why your father had to die.”

“Yuki-sama,” He lowered his eyes, hating how close to tears he seemed nowadays, “I’m not doubting that, I – ” She reached a hand out to his neck and he froze, sensing her finger over a mark that had long since healed but that she’d seen anyway, despite how hard he’d tried to hide it.

“Can I please know who it was?” Her already wide eyes were larger as she asked and Hanabusa shut his to avoid them, taking her hand and pulling it away from his skin. She let him, not forcing the issue, but he knew her curiosity wouldn’t be abated that easily.

Luckily for him, however, the clock chimed to interrupt them and he was reminded that he was expected to teach in just under 10 minutes.

“The lessons are starting.” He murmured, climbing down, and she hopped off of the desk with him to help gather up the notes, more flustered than he was unsurprisingly. Once he was prepared, and had pushed all of these thoughts right to the back of his mind, he darted down to the front just as the students began to file in.

Those that didn’t know he was teaching glanced at him curiously but no one questioned it and soon enough, everyone was present.

“Um. Hi. Hello everyone.” He waved before frowning at himself and shaking his head, “I mean – please sit down.” Surprisingly, they did so the first time he asked, and no one sprawled over on the desks as they sometimes had last year. He looked up to see Yuki smiling at him encouragingly and Kimiki giving the thumbs-up.

He forced himself to relax at that, running a hand through his hair, and beginning. “Today I’m going to go straight into the topic but if you can’t follow, tell me _after_ class please.”

There were a few murmurs but most of them settled in. He took in a deep breath and sorted through his notes quickly, deciding that the best way to go about this was to pretend that each student was Yuki when he tutored her. Only, a much cleverer Yuki who actually paid attention.

As he went on however, the teaching became easier and he soon lost himself in the fact that – whether they liked it or not – he was smarter than everyone in this room and that helped with all of the questions and issues.

He also did _not_ snap, even when someone looked like they were nodding off, and the only time he did break his concentration was when the doors at the back opened and Kiryu stepped inside. He’d noticed him do this a few times already, over the last couple of days, but to see it as he taught made him falter.

Several students turned to see what had distracted him and while many glared at Kiryu, most spun back around to avoid his stare.

After a moment, Hanabusa continued as though he hadn’t interrupted himself and ignored Kiryu as best he could. By the time the lesson was over, he was gone anyway and Hanabusa had gotten back into stride with what he’d been teaching. 

“You were good.” Shiki told him afterward and Hanabusa smiled in thanks.

“Very good,” Maria spoke and now, for the first time since her arrival, Hanabusa looked at her. It had been difficult to see past what she’d been before but it wasn’t her fault of course, and he knew from Yuki that the real Maria was a sweet girl and nothing like her pureblood aunt. Besides, Shizuka was dead now anyway. 

“Thank you, Maria-san.” Anything else he may have said was drowned out by the next professor arriving and everyone returned to their seats. Knowing that it was mathematics now however, he debated staying and decided against it, sure that he wouldn’t be able to concentrate and not really feeling the need to be here now that his role was done.

So instead, when the teacher began to check what he should begin with, Hanabusa stood and left the room. He walked the grounds quickly, hoping to avoid the two ‘guardians’, and went up to his room to take a bath and relax for the first time in a long time.

The Dorm was currently empty, obviously, but the quiet was soothing for once and didn’t make his skin crawl. And his head felt less like it was going to burst.

Once he had a clean set of clothes ready to change into, he turned the taps on to hot, and began to undress when the room was warm enough for it. Sighing out his troubles, he bent and opened the cupboards to get a towel out, wrapping himself with it just as the doors burst open.

“What the he – !” He stumbled in his shock, his heart hammering, to see Kiryu stood in the doorway, “What the _hell_ are you doing?”

“I warned you to stay in class.” Kiryu reminded him, before taking in the bath and visibly realising what he’d just walked in on.

“And you couldn’t remind me when I was _dressed?”_ Hanabusa snapped, reaching over to switch the taps off and holding onto the towel tight to keep it from slipping down.

“I’ve seen you naked before.” Kiryu scoffed, glancing around, and Hanabusa’s face burned. “… thank you, by the way. I don’t think I’ve said it – ”

“You don’t have to.” Hanabusa cut him off, “But you’re welcome. Now get out.”

Kiryu looked at him, his eyes dark, “Did I hurt you?” He asked and Hanabusa’s hands began to shake.

“No more than I was expecting. And no more than you warned you would. Now please, get out.”

But he didn’t. He simply stood there, his expression unchanging, “Are you pregnant?”

And now, Hanabusa felt like slapping him, “_What?”_

“Is the reason you’re behaving so _strange_, because you’re pregnant?” Kiryu repeated as though he didn’t seem to notice the absurdity of this conversation. And what could happen if anyone overheard, “Because if you are, then – you should know. I _would_ take responsibility.”

Staring at him, Hanabusa felt dazed, “What?” He repeated, dumbly.

“You helped me. I wouldn’t forget that. If you were pregnant, then – I wouldn’t just abandon that.” He looked a little awkward now, as though he was forcing himself to say this out of sheer honour, if nothing else, “We wouldn’t be a couple, obviously, how could we? But I would take responsibility.”

“I see.” Straightening, Hanabusa felt that same shard of ice he’d felt back then dig into his throat, “Well I’m not pregnant. So you don’t have to keep this up and can go back to having no responsibility.”

“What is your problem?” Kiryu asked now, finally showing a different emotion and frowning, “You came to _me_. I didn’t ask for your help but I’m thanking you for it.”

“Yes, you’ve said so. And I said, ‘you’re welcome’, but right now, I’m having a _bath_ so we can finish this later.”

“Later.” Kiryu repeated, annoyed, “You mean when you look at me and then pretend you weren’t? If I didn’t know what had happened, I’d think you were planning something.”

“Well I’m not.” Hanabusa snapped, “So for the last time. Get. Out.”

Narrowing his eyes, Kiryu clearly noticed how strung-out he was and folded his arms across his chest, staying put. “Not until you tell me what’s wrong.”

_‘Is it Yuki?’_ Was left unsaid but he knew that that was what he was truly asking, because of course, he wouldn’t ask her himself. Not pining the way he was.

“Nothing’s wrong and I’m _having_ a _bath_.” Hanabusa bit.

Raising an eyebrow, Kiryu gestured to the space between them and challenged, “I’m not stopping you.”

Beyond angry now, Hanabusa bared his teeth, glaring, “Fine.” He snapped, “You want to stay? Stay.”

He lifted his arms and let the towel fall, meeting Kiryu’s gaze the entire time. It wasn’t until he felt the breeze from the open doors that he realised how stupid that was but by then, his nakedness had been on display for a full 30 seconds and he wasn’t bending to grab the towel _now._

Kiryu didn’t react anyway, though he looked slightly amused, but when he opened his mouth to say whatever comment he could think of, a sound from behind him made him pause.

“Aido-sama, are you okay? You left so e – ?” Kimiki rounded the corner and saw him stood there, naked and facing Kiryu, and she froze, “Oh. Oh! I’m sorry!” Immediately, she turned tail and ran and Hanabusa grabbed the towel to cover himself all too late.

“Shit.” He bit his lip, completely distressed, _“Shit.”_

“I’ll go talk to her.” Kiryu said but Hanabusa darted forward to grab his arm.

“No. Leave her alone, you’ll make her burst.” He said, “She’s embarrassed but she won’t tell anyone. I know she won’t.” He lowered his head, “She wouldn’t tell Yuki-sama.”

Kiryu looked at him, unblinking for a while, before pulling free his arm and nodding, “Your choice.” He nodded to the tub, “Don’t you need lavender in that?”

“No.” Hanabusa scowled, “Lavender is for bedsheets. Roses are for baths.”

“Whatever you like.” Kiryu rolled his eyes, turning and leaving the room. With him gone, Hanabusa shut and locked the doors, as he should have from the start, and rest his forehead against the wall.

Despite his assurance that Kimiki wouldn’t tell anyone, he didn’t really know her all that much and he had rejected her sister. He didn’t know how she’d react to the knowledge that it might have been because he was in a relationship with a hunter, which was far from the truth, but that was what it must have looked like.

If she told her sister this and Haru told her father, the news would spread like wildfire and – God. What would Yuki say? What would his sisters say if they found out?

He crumpled to the floor, holding his head in his hands. Of all the stupid, petty things to do, why drop the towel?

Why did Kiryu seem to bring out the worst in him?

He punched the wall angrily, the room becoming as icy as he felt before he eventually controlled himself and reeled it back in.

In the end, he had to drain the bath water away and went to bed instead, wondering what tomorrow was going to bring him now.

One thing was certain, however, and that was that staying at this school was probably not a good idea. And if he was ever going to have a good one, he’d choose to leave and help Yuki some other way.

.


End file.
